Monday, December 24, 2012

So, it has finally happened ! We, the great Indians have
managed to do it yet again. Only this time, it seems so many fold more
preposterous.

Sachin R. Tendulkar has finally called it quits as far as
one-day international cricket is concerned. Something which would comfort and
console a lot of ‘well-wishers’ of Indian cricket. It has been for a long time
now that people who consider themselves cricket intellectuals have been
demanding for Sachin to retire. And the reasons for this demand have ranged from
age-issues to dip in form and about making way for youngsters.

Age ? I didn’t know there was a certain age of retirement
for cricketers. Even if a cricketer is absolutely fit and motivated, how does
his age matter ? If anyone in the world, it is a cricketer himself who knows
the best about his own body. And no other cricketer could analyze the state of
his own fitness better than Sachin Tendulkar.

We Indian cricket enthusiasts have forced so many fit and in
form cricketers into retirement. A certain Robin Singh, who is more than double
the age of many current Indian cricketers is still fitter and more agile than
them in the field. Yet we forced him to retire because of his age long ago.

People seemed to have got bored with Sachin. I wonder why we
never get bored of the non-performing over-aged politicians of the country as
well.

It is us Indians who made the man a ‘God’. And then we
expected him to work wonders every time he walked out to bat. And just when we
saw signs of him being human, we wanted him out. Talking of form, Sachin (being
out of form for months) still has better statistics during these last months
than many ‘young’ batsmen in the Indian team.

But we are so obsessed about our country. We want victories.
We want to be proud. I wonder how many of such proud Indian cricket fans can
remember the date when India
was ranked the No. 1 team in ‘Test cricket’. Or how many people remember the
number of days ‘Team India’
remained at rank No. 1 ?

But still we want victories. We want to be No. 1. Even if
after a victory we forget about it in a couple of days. But how many of us can
forget what Sachin did on that stormy night in Sharjah ? Or that six he hit off
Shoaib Akhtar at Centurion in the 2003 World Cup ? Or the first double-century
in one-day cricket ? Or the amazing set of innings in the 1996 World Cup ? The
list is endless. And also unforgettable. The records which he set will stand at
the top of the world for generations with (IND) written along his name. Something which
would be permanent. Wouldn’t that be what would make any Indian proud whenever
and wherever ?

There were talks of Sachin being selfish. The popular
concept going around was - ‘one should retire when one is at the peak of form rather
than at a time when out of form’. Now, aren’t these two contrasting logics ? I
always thought, if one retires at the peak of his form, isn’t one being selfish
to put himself first by going away with everything good around him for the sake
of his image ? Shouldn’t he be rather serving the country when he is at his
best ? And Sachin endorsed exactly this logic sometime back when asked about
his retirement.

People have become completely materialistic. I think us
Indian don’t even know what happiness is. Consider the following two scenarios.

[Scenarion A]

The Indian Team scores 300 singles batting first in a
one-day match. And then restricts the opposition at 180 for 2 in their 50 overs
and wins the match.

[Scenario B]

The Indian Team scores 220 runs being all-out in 40 overs
where a Sehwag hits 80 off 35 balls. But loses the match as the other team
scores 221 for 9 wickets on the last ball of the match.

Now which of the above scenario would one prefer. I’m sure
the average ‘well-wisher’ of Indian cricket looking for pride and victory would
happily opt for Scenario A.

It is evident that people have forgotten the essence of
sport. While a victory is certainly to be rejoiced, a loss is an experience to
learn from and improve oneself to be better prepared the next time. But people
today are simply intolerant to loss. The are happy to have hollow victories.
Even if they come in the form of a ‘Duckworth-Lewis’ rule.

And for the want of such hollow pride, we don’t even think
before dismissing those who gave us moments to cherish for a lifetime.

People say that the veterans have to make way for the
youngsters. But where are the youngsters ? There is still not a single
replacement of a Dravid/Laxman/Ganguly/Kumble in sight. If there is, he’ll not
need to have a way made for him. Sachin didn’t require a veteran to make way
for him. Neither did the other greats. Their merit got them through.

People talk of Virat Kohli. Ok. He may have loads and loads
and loads of talent. He may help India win many matches. He may even
surpass all of Sachin’s records (which I think he never will). But he will
never have the same class. And so he will never motivate me.

Class and character don’t come with success. They are
inherent to a person. Unlike a Virat Kohli, Sachin never needed to jump in the
air, jab a punch and shout abuses when he completed the run for his first
century. And neither did he need to after any of his 100 centuries. Humility
and discipline are the hallmark of greats such as Sachin, Dravid, Laxman,
Kumble, etc. But the Indian cricket fan gives a boot to such virtues.

Dear Indian cricket fan(atic), God gave you a ‘God’,
but you couldn’t even respect him. So rejoice, you ungrateful lot, in your delusion of
cricket-fanaticism. I’m done with it. What you really deserve is nothing more
than ‘IPL’.

Friday, November 23, 2012

In recent times, there has been a lot of hue & cry over the
right to freedom of expression. The latest incident related to the same topic
is the arrest of two young girls who expressed their opinion on a social
networking website. It is evident that we as a country have become utterly
confused about the concept and difference between criticism and insult.

Criticism pertains to questioning or disagreeing with
someone or something and which is usually (and should be) backed with logical
reasoning.

Whereas, insult is an emotional outburst to display the
dislike for someone or something with usually no backing with logic or reason.
When a person resorts to insulting another person, it is mainly because of the
lack of valid logics to disagree. It is just a sign of desperation to hurt
someone due to a prejudiced dislike.

The debate on the right to freedom of expression has
entangled itself between two sets of confused people.

Those
who take any and every criticism against themselves as an insult.

The recent case of the arrest of the two girls is a clear
example of this type of confusion. It was actually just an act of valid
criticism of the concept of ‘bandhs’ which was taken as an insult.

Those
who think that the right to freedom of expression is actually the right to
freedom to insult/abuse.

The case of the cartoonist who was arrested and charged with
sedition (though the charge of sedition was absolutely absurd) is an example of
this type of confusion. The cartoonist displayed his emotional outburst towards
the rampant corruption and ended up insulting the national symbols. This, he
felt was under his right to freedom of expression.

In my opinion, freedom to express oneself is about differing
and disagreeing with the opinion of others and to be able to express that
disagreement and question the other opinion on the basis of logic. Resorting to
abusive/insulting words or expressions is a clear sign of desperation of not
having a concrete logical backing for one’s opinions.

Criticism towards one’s beliefs is the most common type to
be perceived as an insult. The belief can be the devotion to a God, a person or
even a practice. These days people tend to have such concrete beliefs that
anything which logically questions that belief is taken to be an insult.

Criticism should be taken as a welcome means for self
improvement. Not being questioned leaves a person in oblivion about the
validity of his own thoughts. Also, criticism is a handy tool to correct the
shortcomings of people and organizations. It makes room for debate in
situations which may be heading in a pre-judged but faulty direction.

On the other hand, sometime back as I tried to reason with
another blogger who thought that freedom of expression meant freedom to insult,
I realized how the freedom can be made a tool to create nuisance.

Take for example, the case of the cartoonist above. India
has had some brilliant cartoonists like Sudhir Dhar, R. K. Laxman, Sudhir
Tailang, Ajit Ninan and many more. None of them had to resort to rude, crude or
vulgar drawings but still managed to put their opinions across so strongly.

I’m not a believer in religious practices. I question and
criticize religious practices (even specific Gods) on the basis of logic and
reason. But that doesn’t make me abuse or insult just for the sake of
disagreement. I would debate a religious devotee on the basis of my logics but
not to insult him or his religion.

India
is facing a time of increasing intolerance to criticism and simultaneous
increase in abusive/insulting expressions of opinions. Those in high places of
social, political and religious power are highly intolerant to criticism which
they interpret as insult.

Mostly, the political class resorts to abuses/insults just
because they don’t have a logical backing to their opinions. And this includes
the so-called emerging crusaders against corruption who often cross the line
from criticism to abuse.

While debating with the blogger I mentioned earlier, I was
told that feeling abused or insulted is a subjective thing. Something appearing
abusive to one person may not be similarly perceived by another. Yes, I agree
that there are extremes of people on both ends of the spectrum. But that
doesn’t mean we bring the bar right down to the base and expect everyone to be
able to tolerate abusive language or behavior.

If a person feels hurt by my cordial communication, it is
entirely his problem. But if I express myself in an abusive or insulting manner
and expect others to be okay with it, then it is my problem.

If only us Indians could learn to take valid criticisms
cordially and stop being fanatics for the right to freedom of expression (which
is often equated to freedom to abuse).

It is only when criticism is done cordially and sensibly that it really becomes the real freedom of expression.

Saturday, September 29, 2012

Being in the field of Medicine for quite some time now, I
have been witness to countless examples of people in distress. Be it a patient
in a hospital or someone known, I have been able to relate their pain to the
obvious or most probable cause according to medical knowledge.

A few weeks back, my uncle (Dad’s younger brother) called me
up to consult me about the ill health of his sister-in-law. Being a lady in her
seventh decade of life, she was admitted to a hospital due to severe weakness
after an episode of viral infection. As her blood investigations revealed, she
was severely anemic and thus had to be transfused with blood. They being rather
unaware of medical details and being in another town, my uncle regularly used
to update and consult me about her health and the treatment she was receiving.

One day, as the lady complained of abdominal pain while
still at the hospital, the doctor in charge ordered for an ultrasound. And to
everyone’s shock, the ultrasound suggested it to be a case of liver cancer which
was confirmed by a subsequent CT scan. On consultation, even the oncologist
confirmed the cancer to be in the fourth stage and declared his helplessness to
consider any sort of curative treatment any further. Hence, she was taken back
home by the family after giving up all hope of her getting any further
treatment at the hospital.

Though her condition continued to deteriorate by each
passing day, the family members tried out all sorts of medication they could
possibly get their hands on. Meanwhile, my uncle kept me updated of any and
every minor complication the lady used to develop.

Just the other day, when my uncle called me up late in the
afternoon, he told me how she had developed severe swelling all over the body,
specially around her face and that she was in severe distress being rather dis-oriented mentally. He said the doctor had come to check on her and ordered
some investigations. I told him to inform me about the results of the
investigations as soon as they arrived.

In the evening, when my uncle called up again and started to
read out the investigation reports, I was already anticipating severe derangement in them. But I was surprised to hear that each and every aspect of
her blood and urine investigations were not only within normal limits, but were
almost the ideal values that a healthy human is expected to have.

For example, her SGPT (a liver enzyme) which has a normal
range of 5-38 units per litre was found to be 20. While without doubt, a case
of liver cancer is sure to have this value in several hundreds. Likewise, her
serum creatinine was stated to be 0.62 (normal range 0.5-1.0) which was highly
unlikely seeing the bad state of her kidneys. Similarly, all the other blood
values and electrolytes were stated to be the ideal values.

On a reflex, I told my uncle that the lab had simply not
done the tests. I asked him to get it done again from some other lab
immediately. By midnight, I got a call from him once again informing me that
they had got the investigations done again from another reputed lab but the
results were still the same. Though they had also sent for the investigations
from a nationally reputed lab whose results were expected by the morning.

It was beyond my understanding as to how all investigations
of such a critically ill patient could be not just within the acceptable
limits, but also be almost the ideal values. Though it was an extremely low
probability, but could two labs commit gross errors in their reports at the
same time ?

I was woken by my uncle’s call early next morning. And he
gave me the most unfortunate news that the old lady had passed away in her
sleep. Before he ended the call, he informed me that the third report had just
been received and it had nothing different than the first two.

Though this was completely against medical logic, but if one
was to believe the reports, everything inside the lady’s body (at least in her
blood) was as perfect as it could be.

This incident has made me wonder whether everything does
become perfect at the end. As if all the cells in a person’s body are at
complete peace with themselves and with one another just before the end. As if
the body is in the final preparation of the eternal peace of the soul.

I don’t really know. It still defies any medical logic. But
as I ponder over this I can’t help but remember the title thought on the blog
of a blog-friend Preethika….

Sunday, August 26, 2012

India
seems to have been gripped with a strange but unspoken competition going on
within its boundaries. States, cities, organizations, individuals, just about
everyone seems to be busy taking on everyone else in a battle of wits. The only
catch being, in this battle of wits, everyone appears unarmed !

Just a few weeks back, the management of the famous Mahalaxmi Temple
in Kolhapur(Maharashtra)
decided to impose a dress-code for the women devotees visiting the temple. But
before they could hog the media limelight, some alert ‘social activists’ from
the city of Ranchi
declared that females who preferred wearing jeans would be greeted with acid
attacks. Though these well-meaning ‘social activists’ didn’t confirm that the
acid would be that contained in their own skulls.

While just the other day, the professors of a college in Bareilly, denied entrance
to female students into the college campus. Why ? Obviously… the girls were
dressed in jeans and tops. (More here)

It appears to be a really sorry state for the Indian male.
With the females being the center of attraction of all and sundry (right from
Guwahati to Mangalore) the Indian male can just sulk in frustration. I mean, a
girl who is covered up from head to toe, revealing no more than 15% of her skin
gets more raised eyebrows than a poor guy standing topless on the road. Why ?
Just because the girl is attired in western clothes on Indian land. So unfair !

According to the management committee of the Mahalaxmi Temple, “it was observed that majority of women visited the temple in western
attire. It doesn't look decent and also distracts attention of male devotees.” (More
here)

And all this
while, I thought a temple was supposed to be for the worship of Gods and
Goddesses and They should have been the ones examining the devotees. Not the
members of some committee. And shouldn’t the male devotees be concentrating on
their devotion to the Gods instead of the girl standing besides them ? Ahhh…
but haven’t I always reveled in the bliss of my ignorance !

And strangely,
the Mahalaxmi Temple is dedicated to Goddess ‘Shakti’,
the goddess of power ! When asked if the temple committee plans similar rules
for male devotees, committee members said that there was "no need for
dress code for male devotees". Errrr… excuse me, but shouldn’t it be the
male devotees who should be properly dressed while visiting a Goddess ?

The professors of
the college in Bareilly
claimed that “wearing jeans spoils the college environment.” Of course,
the male students and the male professors (many of whom themselves were dressed
in jeans) would be expecting any and every girl dressed in jeans to break into
an ‘item song’ on the campus. Detrimental to the studies… I tell you !!!

Strangely, sometime back the professors of an ‘all-girls’
college in my own city were in the news as they banned jeans for its students.
And there weren’t even any male students or professors in that college !

And all this while, the ignorant me thought that the issue
was about the showing of skin. (exclusively related to females, obviously)

Though, of course, skin show is sacrilege. For a female,
that is. A man wearing an ill-fitting t-shirt and shorts is welcome to fold his
hands and pray in a temple (I’ve witnessed it many times myself), but not a
girl who forgets to cover up her head. I was a bit confused when I saw the male
priest of a famous temple performing the ‘aarti’ with just a ‘dhoti’ tied
around his waist. The ‘Tissot’ watch on his wrist was obviously ‘western’.
Though he didn’t have a baseball cap on his head. Or any other head-gear for
that matter. If the dress/decency aspect is to be considered, then how, he was
the most eligible person to be nearest to the Goddess was something my idle
brain couldn’t comprehend.

So, jeans, shorts or skirts are western. And thus, are
strictly forbidden. But why just for girls ? Ohh… boys don’t wear skirts. So,
jeans and shorts are fine for boys. But I wonder why don’t boys test the waters
by trying out skirts. Maybe that will be fine as well. But as long as one is a
good, cultured Indian girl, jeans, shorts and skirts are forbidden. No wonder
the young girls from the village ‘Asara’ collectively burnt a bonfire of jeans and
other western dresses in favor of a 'directive' dress code by their elders
recently. (More here)

When a Sunita Williams walks smartly dressed in a pair of
jeans, she is ‘Bharat Ki Beti’.

When a Saina Nehwal wins an Olympic Bronze wearing a short
skirt, she is ‘Bharat Ki Shaan’.

Ahhhhh….. where was I ???

Last week while blog-hopping, I stumbled on to a story of a
young American girl who has been going around topless in New York State since
1992 to raise
awareness that it's legal for a woman to be topless anywhere a guy
can be without a shirt. According to her, she was harassed by middle-aged men
while debating going topless with passersby (including one man who said topless
women are "going against God's law"). So you see, God’s laws are not
just a boon to India.
They are fortunately available all around the world. But it is in India,
that those ‘laws’ can be effectively put into practice (exclusively to
females).

August 26th is ‘International Go Topless Day’.
But our society believes in celebrating our ‘top-less-ness’ all the year round.
Our top floors are ever so empty !

Monday, August 20, 2012

The other night I was watching a debate on ‘Times Now’ about
an ex-minister who has been accused in the case of suicide by a young
air-hostess. Anyone with a bit of common sense, after watching the development
of the case can understand how a person with power, money and a criminal
record, has been making a mockery of the legal system of the country.

Yet, I was aghast to see a senior lawyer of the Supreme
Court (who has been selected by the accused politician to fight his case)
exclaiming his client to be absolutely innocent. According to him, the accused,
who had been declared absconding by the police, was merely exercising his legal
rights by evading questioning and seeking anticipatory bail.

Now, why would a person seek anticipatory bail and abscond
to evade the police if he is absolutely innocent ? It doesn’t really require
rocket-science to make out how innocent the man really is. But then why was
such an eminent and senior lawyer trying to defend a man who had so many
evidences against him ?

It could be because the lawyer was carrying out his
professional duty towards his client who had obviously paid him a huge amount
of fee. Not considering money to be the deciding factor, but should we really
imagine that the lawyer was bound to do so because of his duty towards his
profession ?

Hence, I wonder if professional duty is such a driving force
that makes a person forget about morality. Or is it just the other side of the
coin of a fair legal system to provide an equal opportunity of defense to an
accused ? Just like the appointment of a lawyer for defense for the terrorist
‘Kasab’ who was captured during the 26/11 attack ?

But does such a criminal even deserve a defense ? Someone
who is caught red-handed murdering so many innocent citizens ? Does such a
terrorist have human-rights for himself who didn’t blink an eye while
destroying hundreds of innocent lives ?

What should the lawyer have done who was appointed to defend
the terrorist ? Should he have accepted just because it was his professional
duty ? Or was his job more important to him ?

Being a doctor, I now shift the same question towards
doctors.

Suppose the accused politician I mentioned above is finally
proved guilty and sentenced to prison. Most probably (if not surely) he will
then complain of chest pain and will be shifted to a personal room in some
hospital. Should the doctor on duty be true towards his profession and treat
the criminal just as another patient ?

I wonder, if I was the doctor on duty in a government
hospital, and was asked to treat a criminal for an illness, who had raped and
murdered a little girl, would I rather think about the ‘Hippocratic oath’
(which asks me to treat any and every person who is in need of treatment) and
treat the criminal with care or would I think about losing my job if I refused.

Should a terrorist like ‘Kasab’ be entitled to the care from
a doctor for an illness just like any other normal patient ? Should the
‘Hippocratic oath’ decide the doctor’s actions ? Or should his conscience
decide it for him ?

Should a professional forget about his professional duties
while tackling a criminal case and let his conscience take the decision ?

OR…. is money and security of job the biggest factor for
one’s actions in today’s times ???

Saturday, August 4, 2012

It has not been surprising how over the past few days, every
news channel is going berserk with debates, discussions, news-specials and
breaking-news about the ‘India Against Corruption’ campaign which has been
going on for quite some time now. There have been views both for and against
the movement, some subdued, others harsh. But there are a few points which made
me ponder upon what exactly was and is happening.

Firstly, as I hear each social-activist, celebrity,
politician and even common people exclaim on the television how every Indian is
sick and tired of corruption in the country. I wonder if every Indian citizen
is against corruption, then who exactly are the corrupt people ? Are they some
individuals imported from places like North Korea,
Iraq or Kazakhstan ?

I know my question appears rather stupid, as ‘every Indian’
here means every citizen who is not corrupt. Then who exactly is corrupt ?

And then I come to realize that the common man or the ‘aam
aadmi’ of India
refers to the government officials, bureaucrats and politicians when he talks about corruption. So I ask, are
theses people then, some foreign nationals who have smuggled into India
for the purpose of looting its people ? Or is it the Chinese population who
voted for our parliamentarians ???

NO ! All the
corrupt people against whom all of India
is fighting are legal citizens of India as well. But are these
government-related individuals any different from the rest of the Indian
population ? (except the fact that they are corrupt)

NO ! They come
from the very society that makes up the rest of the population. Be it a peon, a
clerk, a bureaucrat, a politician or a minister. And it is certain that a
person’s economic class has nothing to do with him being corrupt or not. A
peon, if corrupt, will ask for a bribe, just as a minister will, to help a
business lobby.

And there’s a war
going on between the IAC movement and the government about passing a bill. The
IAC wants a ‘Jan Lokpal Bill’ while the government is adamant on its own
version of a ‘Lokpal Bill’. And it is almost an accepted perception that such a
bill will certainly curtail corruption and without which corruption cannot be
checked. As if such a Bill/law/anti-corruption body is the one and only way to
weed out corruption from the country.

So, in other
words, we are trying to emphasize that we, the corrupt people, will not change
unless and until there is a law which honestly and efficiently checks us if we
are corrupt and punishes us if we are guilty !

Isn’t it amazing
how we dance, sing, fly the tricolor and rejoice in anticipation of the passing
of such a ‘Bill’. Isn’t it like rejoicing about the realization of the extent
of corruption ?

Should we
actually be proud that our society has come to such a low that there is no hope
of us changing and we simply refuse to change unless we are checked and
punished ??? That we will stop being corrupt only when forced by the law…

It is said that
corruption is so rampant because the people in charge are not accountable. And
that the people at the helm are corrupt themselves so corruption is rooted deep
into the system. Doesn’t that mean that every subordinate will continue to be
corrupt till his superior is corrupt too ?

Are all
government officials honest people before they join their jobs ?

Do they become
corrupt only after they get into the government service ?

If they were
honest before, should they become corrupt just because they have a corrupt
superior who doesn’t check them ?

Each and every
government official and employee is from amongst us. They may be someone from
our family, friends, neighbors or relatives. Then how do they manage to become
corrupt ? Is a person corrupt without his family knowing about it ? But still,
we as a society let it happen just because it is someone close to us. And we
point fingers to those whom we are not related to.

Secondly, is
corruption only synonymous with the government ? Is every other individual in
any other field of work completely honest ?

What about the
doctor at a private hospital who refers his patients for useless investigations
just because he gets a part of the investigation charges too ? Is that not
corruption ? (Being from the medical field I have witnessed things which might
put even a government employee to shame)

What about the
employee of a Multi National company who prepares forged bills for
re-imbursement from his company ? Is he not corrupt ?

What about the
member of a NGO who bungles funded money instead of utilizing it for the
required purpose ? Is that not corruption ?

What about the
person who drives without a seat-belt/helmet or over-speeds and tries to bribe
the policeman instead of accepting a ticket ? Is he honest ?

A common-man who
is a honest citizen who is sick and tired of corruption, protests for an
anti-corruption bill without realizing :

How he turns his
head away when his neighbor is hacking the electricity line without using a
valid meter. Just because the neighbor looks after his house when he is away.

How he tries to
bribe a railway official to provide him a seat without having a valid ticket to
travel.

How he skips taking a valid bill while shopping, to evade
the service tax.

How he ignores the fact that his own colleagues are
indulging in corrupt practices while being in either the government or the
private sector.

How he writes an application for a false sickness-leave for
his school going relative just because he skipped school for no reason.
Probably training the kid who may one day himself go on to forge documents as
an official.

How he secretly conducts coaching classes even though it is
illegal for him to do so being a government salaried school/college teacher.

How he bungles up donations collected from the locality in
the name of organizing a religious function.

The above are just a few examples of the types of corruption
a common man takes active part in. And even if I haven't indulged in such acts, I am no less corrupt by being a mute spectator and letting others indulge in such acts just because they are close to me.

But somehow, we seem to be obsessed by linking the word
corruption to everything related to only government offices. We detest at
having to pay a bribe to a stranger in some office, but we are fine when our
own near and dear ones do the same.

I am all for any anti-corruption bill, even if it is
directed only to government related corruption and even if it curbs corruption
by 0.0001%. Anything positive, no matter how little should be appreciated.

But living in a false sense of euphoria that any rule or law
can eradicate corruption or even curb it to a great extent is dangerous.

Corruption is not some dust that can be wiped with the magic
broom of a Bill. It is also not any act. (bribe or otherwise) Corruption is a
part of one’s character. So, even if strict laws are made to check a corrupt
individual, he will always find ways to play by his character.

A rule or a law can be a symptomatic treatment. But just as
in medicine, any symptomatic treatment should be given to suppress the symptoms
while the root cause of the disease is being treated, just relying on a
symptomatic treatment for cure can be dangerous. So, prevention and awareness
of our society through those near to us is the only way to cure the menace of
corruption. And that’s not possible overnight.

As for the government, it can never change till people
continue to vote according to caste, religion and ideologies of political
parties.

So, while I’ll be all for any anti-corruption movement, I,
as a citizen, need to check my own indulgence in any sort of corruption and
also create awareness and prevent those near me to indulge in corruption. I
don’t need to sing, dance, clap or run around with a cap on my head and a tricolor
in my hand in anticipation of a magic cure in the form of a Bill. Even if that
forces me to be labeled as pro-corruption.

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Sometime back, I read a post by Preethika about how females are held responsible even for disputes between men and how it is said that it all happened ‘coz of her’…

I was still pondering on it when I read this incident about a girl who was traveling in the Delhi Metro.

And then, I saw the news about a group of morons in some village near Baghpat in U.P. (calling themselves some sort of a Panchayat) who announced a diktat according to which all women under the age of 40,

Are to be barred from going to a market alone

Should not be seen in public without covering their heads

Cannot use mobile phones

Cannot have a love-marriage

It is not at all surprising such things actually happening all around us. Ever since our civilization came into being, women have been forced to find satisfaction in being the subordinate gender. Even all the religions, either through their texts or their rituals have made sure that this gender-discrimination not only continues but grows stronger.

Very early in the course of human evolution, males realized the special powers the females of their species were blessed with. The males realized that females were in fact, the stronger sex. So, before the female population could realize this fact, the make up of the society was constructed such that the females should never get to know their strength and would readily accept the superiority of the males.

Being a student of Zoology, I learned how living things evolved and how creatures adapted to retain certain functions and corresponding body parts. Over the passage of millions of years, these characters eventually got incorporated in the very genes of the creatures.

And I think, so has the aspect of male superiority got incorporated in the very DNA of our population. (At least of those in the sub-continent) Just as a baby of a carnivorous animal doesn’t need to be told to be attracted by flesh, similarly, it comes automatically to a man to feel superior to a woman.

I’m not generalizing each and every male in the Indian sub-continent to be the same. And surely they all are not the same. But it usually takes a fairly decent upbringing to make a male different from the above norm of male dominance over females.

To put it bluntly, males cannot tolerate a female to be an equal, let alone be better in any aspect of life. So, they have to be kept in subordination. Either through religion, culture, rituals, emotions, laws or if everything fails, through force.

The above diktat is supposedly to prevent harassment of females of the society. Obviously, the harassment is expected from the males. But strangely, the clever males themselves decide to restrict the freedom of the females in order to escape harassment.

I just wonder…

Why not ban all males from going to the market unless accompanied by a female ?

Why not propose a dress code for the males (who have no qualms in going around a public place even bare-chested) ?

Why not prevent males from using mobile phones ?

And when they put an age limit of 40, is it expected that each female also carries a proof of age along with her ? So, that a goon may come up to her and say…

“Hello Ma’am ! Are you being accompanied by any male ? Can I have a look at your ‘Voter ID’ ? Ohh. So you turned 40 yesterday ? Here’s your ID. Sorry to bother you. Enjoy your shopping.”

Or would he say…

“Hello Ma’am ! Are you being accompanied by any male ? No ? Can I have a look at your ‘Voter ID’ ? Ohh. So you are turning 40 next week ? Hey guys… come on. She asked for it !”

And just how did they get the idea that using a mobile phone jeopardizes the safety of a woman when she goes out ??? Is it so that a goon/molester calls on the mobile phone of a girl and says…

“Hello. Sorry to disturb you. Can you tell me your plans for shopping tonight ? Will you be alone ? Yes ? Good. I’ll be there with my goons. See you !”

And they have banned love-marriages. The order says that anyone resorting to love marriage will be boycotted by the community and anyone found helping them will face a similar fate. In other words, they have a problem with the concept of love marriage. So, even if the girl and guy are well settled in their careers and earning well, they will not be allowed to love and marry.

I now think that the same-religion/same-caste marriage thing is just an excuse to continue the like-minded communion of superiority-complexed males. Something they will lose if love marriages are allowed to take place which allows a girl to get something she likes and chooses.

The people who resort to such moronic rules are actually the males who, during their own lifetime, have passed through an age where they couldn’t achieve what they wanted. That includes the absence of technology (mobile phones to connect to their love interest) and the forceful rejection by the elders to any rare confession of love. So, these frustrated souls would rather die than let the females (who enjoy living in relatively better times) get away with their dreams, aspirations and most importantly, their freedom.

Often, while driving, I have noticed when a girl zooms past on her two-wheeler, within a matter of seconds, a guy (or a couple of them) on another two-wheeler, speed up past the girl, often swerving into her and making her stop in order to avoid a fall, and driving off after some sneers, glares or even some nasty words. I guess they just cannot stand being overtaken by a girl on the road even if she is in a hurry to reach her work.

Even during my college days, in the very first year, I ended up being second in my batch in the university exams. Ranks 1, 3, 4 and 5 were all taken by girls. I was more bewildered than anything about my result as I was praying to just pass but ended up being second. But, on more than one occasion, boys from my batch came up to me saying, “You should have topped. So, she should have been shown her real place !” Obviously, they didn’t care how they fared, but were visibly hurt because a female had topped.

So, be it at home, at work, at school or college, or even on the road, a man cannot digest a woman being better than him even if she has got nothing to do with him.

And I don’t think any set of rules or laws or even education can make a difference to this inherent gender-discrimination. As I said above, it seems to have been incorporated in our genes now. I only hope, and hope dearly, that the character of quiet acceptance hasn’t yet incorporated into the genes of females.

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Though different people have different preferences for their
favorite season, my Mom isn’t particularly fond of summers. That is so, because
the scorching heat of the sun drives everyone inside their homes, while the
same heat seems to drive lizards out of theirs. During various hours of the day
my Mom can be found jumping, screaming and running around at the sight of a
lizard while I can be found shooing off lizards of all sizes out of the house
for her.

In spite of my repeated attempts Mom refuses to accept my
views regarding lizards being sober and harmless creatures. On the contrary,
she warns me to have me sent to a mental asylum whenever she notices me trying
to train and befriend the lizard which lives below our refrigerator.

My views about lizards, though appearing to be eccentric,
are not entirely hypothetical. I found out the usefulness which a lizard can be
capable of during my Medical college days.

There used to be a famous annual fair in the city for an
entire month or so that used to start in the evening and carried on all through
the night. During one of our visits to the fair I found a guy on a pavement,
selling fake replicas of animals. I was specially impressed by the replicas of
lizards he had. So, finally giving in to my temptation, I bought a fake lizard
which looked completely alive until one actually touched it. (which wasn’t
something anyone would do if it really looked real ! :P )

I didn’t actually know what to do with it until two days
later I saw a probable use. One of my batch mates, who lived in our hostel, was
a very naughty fellow. He was short, stout, extremely fair complexioned and a
fashion-freak. But he had a huge weakness. Lizards ! The mere mention of the
word could make his spine tingle.

Everyday, he used to come up to my room and knock at the
door. He used to do that mostly at hours when I was asleep. While I used to
groggily open the door, he would quickly hit the electricity switches beside
the door, shut the fan, switch on the lights, grin mischievously, and run away
laughing.

So, this very day, while I was inspecting the brilliant
replica of the fake lizard I had bought, I got an idea. I placed the lizard
strategically on the electricity board so that it just spanned the entire row
of switches. As expected, the naughty guy came up to my room expecting me to be
asleep while I was wide awake waiting for him.

I opened the door a bit more than usual after the knock, and
saw his grinning face as he looked at me while hitting the switches. In an
instant, he felt something was different. As he looked at the electric board
and removed his hand, the strategically placed lizard fell down just as a real
lizard would have fallen.

I have heard about how people pale when they are scared. And
I never thought a person of such fair complexion could pale any further. But
pale he did. And that too in a fraction of milliseconds. I wonder if you can
imagine a person trying to swim, kick a football and do a high-jump back-flip
all together. But I was treated to witness such a spectacle as he did all that
and maybe even more which was beyond my comprehension. And as soon as he
returned to the ground, he made a dash for somewhere as far possible as could
be from my room. And for the next fifteen minutes or so, the inhabitants of our
hostel heard the most spine-chilling shrieks till this guy found a way to make
a dash for the open spaces outside the building.

I had become a big fan of my ‘pet lizard’. :-)

A few days later, our small batch of fifteen students was trying
to survive a class of evening clinical teaching by a junior resident who seemed
to have found the truth about ‘Irritable Bowel Syndrome’ and was bent on
imparting the divine knowledge on to us highly uninterested disciples.

I was seated in the second row of chairs while the first row
was occupied by most of the girls. The resident was seated opposite to us with
just a small table separating us. I thought it a good idea to bring some life
into the proceedings when I saw my immediate neighbor borrowing a pen from the
girl sitting right in front of me. This caught my attention as I was
particularly fond of her. :D

I noticed that she had one of those small purse-like pencil
cases in which she used to keep about fifty assorted pens and pencils. As she
had handed the entire case to my neighbor to pick out his choice of pen, I
quickly reached into my bag for my ‘pet’. I quickly took the case from him, and
as he watched on, I strategically placed the fake lizard below a stack of a
dozen pens. I zipped it up and told him to return it back to her.

After a few minutes, I asked my neighbor to ask her for a
particular colored pen again. And as per my expectations, she decided to find
it herself this time. I watched intently as she unzipped the case and dug in to
find the desired pen. The only sounds in the room were the incomprehensible
blabber of the resident, the ticking of the clock and the heart-beat of my
neighbor.

It is strange how sometimes we never learn from experience.
Just a couple of days back I had seen a guy freak out as never before, but here
I was again, trying something similar in much dangerous circumstances.

And the next moment, there was a loud gasp. I wonder if you
have ever heard a gasp. But everyone there did hear it. Which was instantly
followed by a colored assortment of pens and pencils flying high up in the air.
A couple of them landed on the resident’s head making him shut his mouth and
bring an end to the ‘discourse’. While my neighbor got the desired colored pen
which actually fell onto his lap.

The resident took off his spectacles and glared at her for
an explanation as she tried to catch her breath and told him about a lizard in
her pencil-case. The resident merely commented on her brisk reflexes and her
ultra-sensitivity towards members of the reptile family and finally announced
the dismissal of the class.

As soon as the initial shock subsided, the girl looked back
to have my neighbor for an early dinner through her eyes. But he still had the
courage to point a shaking finger towards me. The case was immediately settled
as she realized that the devil mind behind the adventure was none other than
mine, and she turned away and started to collect the contents of her
pencil-case.

Though she knew it was a fake lizard, but no one else in the
room could find out as I had noticed the lizard falling just beside her chair
and which was now safely hidden below my shoe.

Though I never brought this up with her after that, but I
take this opportunity here to say a little sorry with a smile. :-)

Ohhh… I just heard Mom scream and call out for me. So I’m
off to lizard-shooing business again. Now… where’s the broom gone…….

Monday, May 28, 2012

I wonder if you ever found yourself in a situation which,
while being funny, left you pretty much shaken and gasping for air. Well, I
managed to find myself in one such situation last weekend.

As my younger brother was visiting home after six months we
all were really excited. And to top it, his short trip to home included his
birthday as well. So, Mom, Dad and me decided to throw a small party on the
occasion.

Having decided to keep it a small affair, we invited only
close friends and family. And going as per past experiences, we decided not to
divulge the reason of the party to the guests in fear of people going overboard
with formalities and gifts. (which eventually turned out to be a big mistake !)

So, on the given date and time, my brother, my cousin and I
reached the party hall before the scheduled time to check if everything was in
order. Other family members followed us in due course of time. We were sitting
there waiting for the guests when I saw my eccentric friend trying to find his
way in through the glass door. Once he discovered which way the door opened, he
came straight towards us with a strange expression on his face.

“OK. So it really is Chicks’ birthday… ?!?!”

“Huh ???” I questioned him.

“When I asked about the way to the hall, the guy at the
reception told me about the birthday party. Darn… I thought it was your
engagement !!!” He complained.

We all burst into laughter while the expression on his face
changed to a more disappointed look. I introduced him to some snacks which took
his mind off his silly thoughts and brought an expectant smile on his face.

Soon, people started trickling in and before long, the hall
was buzzing with life. I was busy with some animated discussion with my friend
when I sensed a hand on my shoulder. I turned to find my uncle (one of Mom’s
cousins) standing with a strange smile on his face. I touched his feet while he
started…

“Many congratulations ! I have been waiting for this day
since so long…” He exclaimed.

“No no. Uncle, it’s Chicks’…” I tried to intervene.

“I’m always right. I told your mom that you’ll be getting
married within a year. Ask her if you don’t believe me.” His smile had turned
to a big grin.

“You what… ??” I suddenly realized what he was getting on
to.

“Uncle, it’s Chicks’ birthday. Not my engagement !” I
informed him trying to force a smile on my face.

His mouth was still open when he got this bit of news from
me. It remained open except that no more sound emerged from it now.

“There he is.” I pointed out to my brother and turned towards
my friends, saving him (and probably myself) any more embarrassment.

I was still thinking about the funny side of it when I saw
my aunt (my Dad’s elder cousin) and her husband entering the hall. I quickly
rushed to them and had barely touched their feet when she asked…

“Where’s the girl ?”

“What girl ???” I snapped back.

“You’ll never change. I’ll have to ask your mom.” She
suddenly spotted my Mom and walked away to meet her ignoring me as if I was the
last person on the earth she wanted to talk to at the moment. I now wondered
whether it would have been better to let everyone know about the occasion of
the party.

I was still watching my aunt’s changing expressions as she
talked to my Mom when someone poked me from the back. I turned around to find
my youngest aunt with her husband. She quickly stuffed an envelope in my pocket
and whispered…

And stepping back she then said. “Sorry I got late. They
weren’t ready to let me leave the office until I told them it’s my nephew’s
engagement. So here I am !!!”

I could feel myself fuming from the ears. And I’m pretty
much sure that the changing colors of my face would have given me away if the
hall was a bit brightly lit. As the crowd kept getting bigger, every third
person would walk up to me to congratulate me and bless the ‘girl’… whoever she
was. And I was getting paranoid by the passing second.

It had got to such a point where my thinking brain started
getting suspicious. Once long ago, I had read in a mystery novel, where a
secret agent is taught by his tutors that there is no such thing as
co-incidence. If you keep bumping into the same person or same situations,
better run for your life. I now assessed the possibilities of a conspiracy. As
I had already made it clear in the past to all of my extended family that they
would be left with an absconding boy if they ever tried to force me into an
arranged marriage, this would be an ideal trap by them to nail me.

And by now I was concentrating on each group of guests that
entered. I had already assessed the best routes of escape if I spotted a bunch
of strangers entering the hall accompanying a young girl. My senses were on
high alert, ready for action at the required moment.

My already tensed mind was suddenly disturbed by my Dad’s
booming voice which announced to the guests the occasion of my brother’s
birthday and invited them to the cake-cutting ceremony. On a reflex, I sighed a
sigh of relief and wiped the sweat on my forehead as I went to find a glass of
chilled water.

But on my way I was stopped by another eccentric friend of
mine who had just entered the hall with his wife holding a big bunch of roses.
With his usual big grin he shook me by the hand and asked…

“Where’s Bhabhi ?”

“Oh you know how hot it is today… ?” I said in a serious
tone.

“Yes. So hot.” He agreed.

“You see that swimming pool down there… ?” I pointed to the
north-east direction.

“Yes.” He replied straining his neck towards the direction I
had pointed.

“Well… she was feeling too hot. So she decided to cool off
in the pool till all the guests have arrived.” I said and moved on.

Monday, April 30, 2012

I had drafted this post a while ago, but somehow I delayed
it as I felt I still had some fine points to add to it. And by some strange
co-incidence, I saw the first episode of the show ‘Satyamev Jayate’ before
publishing this. So it made it easier for me to add the points which I had left
earlier in writing this piece.

While reading the latest anthropological data of India (for
my upcoming exams), I wasn’t at all surprised to find the child sex ratio dip
further to a mere 914. Ok, the gender of a baby is based on a 50-50
probability. But such a vast gender difference cannot be attributed to
probability alone. And as we all know, female feticide is the main reason for this
appalling sex ratio.

Thinking of it, I wondered why do people even consider such
a crime for the want of a male child. And after going through my observations
of people and some absolutely ridiculous mindsets throughout my life, I could
list the following reasons for the prevalence of female feticide in India.

The
want of a male child to continue the so called ‘vansh’.

A
male child would ensure more earning hands in a family with low economic
background.

A
male child would ensure that the parents are cared for in their old age.

A
female child would require saving money all life for her wedding. That
includes the dowry to be given along with.

Even
before the marriage of a female child and forever after that, her parents
and family would have to live a life of humbleness and humility in
relation to her husband and his family.

Ladies
under the influence of some unsaid comparative competition between
themselves take pride in their daughter-in-laws having a male child.

Women
themselves want a male child under some delusion of it being a sort of
redemption in the eyes of their husband and in-laws.

Here is what I feel about each of the above points I
mentioned.

Pedigree.
Do people actually know about their ancestors four or five generations ago
? If they don’t even know whose family tree they are so keen to expand,
what’s this big issue about the family lineage ?

Yes,
that does hold true for some (if not most) underprivileged families. But
I’ve seen it usually backfiring. I can recount at least half a dozen cases
which have two or more male children (who were obviously expected to help
in the family’s earnings), but still, they are the ones who do nothing
while the girl children of the family are burdened with the family’s
earnings. If that’s the case, then shouldn’t it be the other way round ?
Having more girl children to increase the family’s earnings. But either
way, it’s simply ridiculous.

Does
a son always ensure taking care of his old parents when they get old ?
Don’t we find sons at war to grab the parents’ property instead of taking
care of them ? Not that it is a generalization, but how can it be a surety
and a reason to want a male son too ?

That
is one of the main reasons for female feticide in most of India. As
soon as a girl is born, her parents start worrying about saving money for
her wedding. And if she is the second or third girl child, then the very
aim of the parents’ life becomes that to marry off their daughters. And
the dowry included actually seems to be the price they have to pay to marry
off their daughters. That’s why I’ve always felt that the very concept of
a wedding should be discarded. A wedding is the ultimate ghastly event
(for a girl’s parents/family) for which the girl suffers all her life
before and then all her life after.

Something
utterly preposterous I’ve seen and experienced is that how the girl’s
parents and family treat her husband and in-laws with folded hands and
bowed heads as if they were something divine just because they are their
daughter’s in-laws. I’ve seen fathers of girls who were getting married
tolerate absolute rogue-ness from the groom’s family before, during and
after the wedding. What advantage exactly does being a groom or his family
have over that of the bride ? Why should only the girl’s family bear all
the expenses of the wedding and not divide it equally between the two
families ? Why does a girl’s family feel helpless even after the girl
being subjected to torture after her marriage ? What exactly is this
outrageous mindset so strongly built in Indian families ?

A
girl’s family is always tensed about their family’s ‘honor’ that is
idiotically related to their girl and her life. In India, a
family’s so called honor and respect is ascertained by how their daughter
lives her life. What she does. How she dresses. Whom she befriends. Where
she goes. But the same family wouldn’t have a care in the world if they
have a son. No matter what he does in his life, it never concerns the
honor of the family.

It
is not just the males of the society, but even the highly educated females
who go berserk for want of a male child in their family. A lady would want
the extreme love and respect from her son, but would never allow him to do
the same with his wife. Recently, in my very close acquaintance, I came to
know of a case where a reputed lady doctor forced her son to torture his
newly wed wife to unbelievable extent so that she wouldn’t be able to
pursue her higher education. I guess such females want a son so that in
future they are in a position to torture another helpless female through
their sadist fantasies.

This
one, though sounding absolutely ghastly, is actually true in most cases
where young women yearn for a male child in order to get into the good
books of their husband and in-laws. Being a female themselves, they don’t
even think about the fact that they are ridiculing their own self. Women
who disown their daughters just because they wanted a son should not have
the right to motherhood. One can’t abuse motherhood once and enjoy it
another time.

And I wouldn’t forget the role of doctors in carrying out
such a ghastly crime as female feticide. Considering that most gynaecologists
in India
are females, it is absolutely shocking how females can themselves be so
heartless while murdering unborn females. Being from the Med field myself, I
hope that such criminals be brought to justice soon.

We all are so worked up against corruption in India recently.
But is monetary corruption all that we can care for ? Is anyone concerned about
this act of corruption at the level of one’s soul that has been happening since
long and still carrying on freely ? Would we come forward together in a war
against female feticide just as people did in the war against corruption ?

Saturday, March 31, 2012

The other day, one of my ‘Facebook-friends’ while wishing everyone happy ‘navratras’ (the nine auspicious days in respect for the Goddess) also commented upon the number of days left for people to once again enjoy all the non-vegetarian food and alcoholic drinks which they were unable to consume during these nine days.

This led me to remember how I witnessed crowds of people literally mobbing the non-veg eating outlets and wine shops just the night before the start of ‘navratras’. And I have been observing this for a few years now. So, I just remembered a small incident in my hostel during my college days.

Being the avid foodie and non-veg fan I always was, I used to go out for dinner with many of my batch mates quite frequently. So, one evening as I emerged from my room, I saw one of them in the corridor having an animated discussion with someone on his phone. As I went up to him and asked him whether he would come along with me for some non-veg dinner, I was a bit taken aback by his reaction.

He suddenly removed the phone from his ear and gave me such a wide-eyed look as if I had just informed him about the latest murder I had committed. He then held both of his ears in his fingers and put his tongue out and blurted something about it being sacrilege to even mention non-veg during ‘navratras’. And then he returned to his animated discussion with the person on the other end of the phone, continuing to mouth the worst expletives a sane person can possibly mouth.

This made me wonder… whether the Goddess made it a point to actually come out of her heavenly abode during these nine days and looked out for people who would be consuming alcohol or/and non-veg secretly, and hence punish them for it.

Another little incident I remember is about when I went to get some books from an old friend of mine. As I made myself comfortable in his room, he brought the customary glass of cold drink with my favorite chocolate biscuits for me. (I don’t touch tea !) When I asked him about his glass, he informed me that he was on a fast as it was ‘Janamashtami’ (the Birth Day of Lord Krishna). I oh okayed as he went again to get the books which I needed.

In the meanwhile, his little nephew, who was just about six or seven years old, came in playing with his new toy car. As he stood near me, I offered him a biscuit to which he shyly shook his head. But on my repeated insisting, he finally took it and started munching. When my friend returned with the books, he exclaimed in surprise on seeing his nephew enjoy the biscuit. On my asking the reason for his reaction, he informed me that his nephew shouldn’t be eating the biscuit as he was on a fast too.

All I could say was, “Excuse me… ?!?!?” He then told his nephew to go away and not to tell his mom about the biscuit adventure.

Now, I wonder, how could a little kid of six control his urge (more so his hunger) on seeing a delicious choco biscuit after being deprived of food since morning. Did he even know why he wasn’t being allowed to eat ? But yes, he would eventually grow into an adult who would doggedly observe fasts and expect others to too without even thinking about the sense behind it all.

I wished to discuss this with my friend. But I knew it’s futile to discuss the merits or demerits of someone’s faith with him or her. Though if I would have tried, the discussion would have gone pretty much on the following lines.

Me : Why do you observe fast on ‘Janamashtami’ ?

Him : Because it is Lord Krishna’s birthday.

Me : Okay. Do you think Lord Krishna loves you considering we all are the Lord’s children ?

Him : Of course. We all are his children.

Me : Okay. Suppose it was your birthday. Would you like your children to keep a fast for you ? Or would you rather take them to a nice restaurant and treat them ?

I’m sure he must have an answer to that too. But for me, I can’t think of anything to answer for that.

Which makes me wonder why do we keep fasts. It’s not about having it on a particular day or a set of days. Neither is it about respect towards a particular God or Goddess. But shouldn’t the basis of a fast be the practice of controlling one’s urges to indulge in things instead of putting it on some God and expressing helplessness in God’s name ?

Should we need a God to scare us from preventing to indulge in something bad just for some specific days ? And if we abstain from such things for some days, does that make us any more devoted or religious ?

I’m a non-vegetarian. Usually vegetarians would accuse me of sacrilege if I consume non-veg during ‘holy’ days. But I never touch alcohol and never will. But that does not provoke me to judge someone just because he or she consumes alcohol irrespective of when they do it. It’s everyone’s personal choice to what they consume.

And also, how do we know that a particular God abhors the consumption of a particular food or drink ? So why is it about non-veg and alcohol ? Why don’t people stop smoking during such fasts too ? Or why don’t people abstain from oily, fatty and fried junk food which really affect one’s health.

Is it because non-veg foods and alcohol are considered bad ? I would accept if someone would relate non-vegetarian food with the killing of innocent animals. I agree. But alcohol is from plant origin. Then why is it considered wrong to consume it during fasts ?

I’m not favoring the consumption of alcohol (as I myself never touch it). But I’m questioning people’s sensibilities about their views regarding particular beliefs.

And, are our Gods and Goddesses so ‘human-minded’ that they would get upset by what we eat or drink or how we dress during certain occasions ? Is it not our own senseless belief which we just blame on the imagined likes and dislikes of our Gods ? But if you so much as even question people about this, you get to face their wrath.

I like eating non-veg and I consume it any of the 365 days of the year. I dislike alcohol and I never consume it irrespective of the occasion. It’s as simple as that. Not consuming something for some days wouldn’t take me any nearer to God. And consuming something on other days wouldn’t take me away from God either.

I just wonder how our Gods and Goddesses would be upset if we consume particular things on some particular days. And on the other hand, the same Gods and Goddesses wouldn’t care a thing if we use abusive language, watch corrupt tv shows and plot and plan against each other during those very days.

But yes, if I question people’s sensibilities on this, they would surely get furious and label me as a non-believer.